My new institutional home, the Sociology of Development and Change group at Wageningen University, has a vacancy for a professor in Disaster and Crisis studies. This is a really exciting post and we would love applications from critical social scientists!

Within the chair group Sociology of Development and Change (SDC) there is a vacancy for a personal professor with demonstrated excellence in teaching and research in the area of crisis and disaster studies. This position contributes to the chair group by focusing on crises and disasters within the context of contemporary processes of development and social change. The chair group is characterized by its interdisciplinary character, its ethnographic and its critical approach to studying development and change in diverse settings. The candidate will develop a research agenda focussing on challenges related to natural and human-made hazards, crises, conflicts, and their effects against the background of broader political, economic, social, cultural and environmental changes, including climate change. As these issues will increasingly play out in highly populated areas, peri-urban and urban settings, they will lead to new conceptual and policy challenges related to coping mechanisms, resilience, (aid) interventions, governance and disaster preparedness.

The position entails research, teaching and supervision of Bachelor, Masters and PhD students, acquisition and related management tasks. We expect the candidate to have affinity with educational innovation and vision in leading and improving the disaster and crisis studies course portfolio, by for instance integrating participatory teaching methods and modern media techniques.

We ask

The candidate has

a PhD in a relevant social science field (anthropology, sociology, geography, development studies, political science) with a focus on conflict or disaster studies,

relevant fieldwork experience,

a strong international network and an excellent publication record,

an innovative and creative approach to opening up new avenues for research and the acquisition of funding.

In addition, we expect the candidate to have experience with interdisciplinary work and the capability to connect people in a team-building atmosphere. The candidate should have a passion for education, proven by a track record of academic teaching and supervision. Interpersonal skills and the ability to enthuse students and colleagues are also key assets. The candidate should be fluent in English. Foreign candidates are expected to learn Dutch.

We offer

We offer a personal professorship. Within Wageningen University, a personal professorship is the outcome of a challenging career trajectory called Tenure Track (for more information about the Tenure Track at Wageningen UR visit www.wageningenur.nl/tenuretrack). We are looking for high potentials who excel in education and research. The position is a permanent one, but the appointed professor will have to go through an assessment after 5 years, on the basis of the tenure criteria that apply to personal professors. A part time position of 0.8 fte is negotiable.

Gross salary: from € 69.822,- to € 92.570,- per year, based on full time employment and dependent on expertise and experience.

To apply, please upload your letter of motivation and your CV, including a list of publications via our online respond button (see this link), before 15 December 2014. You will receive an automatic e-mail confirmation within 24 hours. The interviews will be held between 5 and 15 January 2015.

Upon shortlisting we ask the candidate to prepare a public trial lecture to be held in Wageningen in February 2015 as part of the assessment procedure.

Please note that only applications sent through the online respond button can be taken into consideration, please do not sent your application via email.

We are

The Sociology of Development and Change (SDC) Group combines a critical approach to development issues and processes with an interest in crisis, governance, livelihood and resources, in rural and urban environments. It is interested in the nexus between local and global processes and the continuities and discontinuities between stability and crisis. Steeped in the traditions of anthropology, sociology, geography, political science and political ecology, we focus on topics such as food security, water and water management, environmental conservation, disaster risk reduction, social movements, and development and humanitarian aid.

Wageningen University & Research centre aims to deliver a substantial contribution to the quality of life. That’s our focus – each and every day. Within our domain, healthy food and living environment, we search for answers to issues affecting society – such as sustainable food production, climate change and alternative energy. Of course, we don’t do this alone. Every day, 6,500 people work on ‘the quality of life’, turning ideas into reality, on a global scale.